1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a medical system and more particularly pertains to protecting vulnerable eyes of a patient during general anesthesia, the protection being done in a safe, sanitary, reliable, convenient, timely and economical manner.
Twenty million patients in the United States undergo general anesthesia each year. In 1992, an American Society of Anesthesiologists Closed Claims Project reported that eye injuries account for 3 percent of all anesthesia-related malpractice claims; 35 percent of these were related to injuries of the cornea.
Twenty percent of corneal abrasions occur when direct trauma or chemical irritants injure the eye. In addition, general anesthesia reduces tear production and stability, thereby exposing patients' eyes to increased risk of drying and abrasion of the cornea. This injurious exposure-induced drying of the cornea occurs in 44 percent of patients with partially open eyelids during anesthesia.
Distracting events during the induction phase of general anesthesia are frequent and have been shown in a European study to have a negative impact on patient management in one in five cases. Eye protection is generally recommended immediately after this phase, once the patient is anesthetized. Distractions during this critical period may delay deployment of eye protection maneuvers. In fact, failure to protect the eyes in a timely fashion, if at all, has been implicated in corneal abrasions by identifying novice anesthesia providers as independent risk factors for this type of injury. Typically, the anesthesiologist tapes the eyes fully shut with a medical tape, often requiring him to turn his attention away from the patient while reaching for tape elsewhere on the anesthesia workstation.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of masks of known designs and configurations is known in the prior art. More specifically, masks of known designs and configurations consist basically of familiar, expected, and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which has been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
By way of example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,949,742 issued Apr. 13, 1975 to Nowakowsi relates to a Medical Dressing. U.S. Pat. No. 4,062,361 issued Dec. 13, 1975 to Poulsen relates to a Bilaminar Ostomy Sealing Disk. U.S. Pat. No. 4,302,500 issued Nov. 24, 1981 to Flora relates to a Breathable Surgical Adhesive Tape. U.S. Pat. No. Des. 397,215 issued Aug. 18, 1998 to Hoftman relates to a Face Mask without an Inflatable Cuff. U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,590 issued Mar. 30, 1999 to Price relates to an Eyelid Closure Patch. U.S. Pat. No. 6,035,852 issued Mar. 14, 2000 to Hoftman relates to an Inflated Cuff Anesthesia/Respiratory Mask with Improved Nasal/Maxilla Bone Adaption. Lastly, U.S. Patent Application Publication Pub. No.: US 2007/0295335 to Nashed published Dec. 27, 2007 relates to a Disposable Anesthesia Face Mask.
While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not describe an integrated medical system that allows for protecting vulnerable eyes of a patient during general anesthesia, the protection being done in a safe, sanitary, reliable, convenient, timely and economical manner.
In this respect, the medical system according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in doing so provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of protecting vulnerable eyes of a patient during general anesthesia, the protection being done in a safe, sanitary, reliable, convenient, timely and economical manner.
Therefore, it can be appreciated that there exists a continuing need for a new and improved medical system which can be used for protecting vulnerable eyes of a patient during general anesthesia, the protection being done in a safe, sanitary, reliable, convenient, timely and economical manner. In this regard, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.